The war in the Middle East has "nothing to do with NATO", says Stefan Kornelius, a spokesman for the German government, according to the AFP news agency.
US President Donald Trump has said that NATO is looking at a very bad future if US allies cannot help reopen the strategically important Strait of Hormuz in the Middle East. But the German government does not see the Western military alliance playing a more active role there.
- NATO is an alliance about defending territory, says Kornelius.
Nor does British Prime Minister Keir Starmer believe that there should be a NATO-led mission in the Strait of Hormuz. But he says that there are plans for an effort.
- We are working with others to create a credible plan for the Strait of Hormuz to ensure that we can reopen shipping and passage through the strait. Let me be clear: this is not going to be and has never been seen as a NATO mission, Starmer told reporters, according to Reuters.
The conflict in the region has largely closed the Strait of Hormuz. It is a strategic bottleneck for about a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas. Oil prices around the world have risen sharply as a result of the unrest.
Trump has said that Europe and China - unlike the United States - are heavily dependent on oil exports from the Gulf. Therefore, they must step in and help the United States, he believes.
- If there is no response, or if it is a negative response, I think it will be very bad for the future of NATO, he said in a telephone interview with the Financial Times.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Monday, according to Reuters, that diplomacy should be the way forward. Italy is not involved in naval missions that could be extended to the area, he said. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius rejects Trump completely.
- What does Donald Trump expect a handful or two of European frigates to do in the Strait of Hormuz that the mighty American navy cannot do?, he says in Berlin.
- It is not our war. We did not start it.
Australia and Japan refused to send naval vessels to the Strait of Hormuz on Monday night. Norway has no plans to help either.
Denmark has declared itself open to the idea of contributing.
- I believe that we should have an open mind in terms of how we can contribute to keeping free navigation free, said Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen (M) on his way to a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday.
/ritzau/
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